Camerata Pacifica to Open 28th Season with John Harbison's String Trio and More

Critically acclaimed chamber music ensemble Camerata Pacifica will open its 28th season with a program that combines Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Harbison's String Trio with a pair of mid-20th century Russian gems - Sergei Prokofiev's striking Sonata for Flute and Piano in D Major and Dmitri Shostakovich's elegiac Piano Trio No. 2 in E Minor. Performances will take place at 3 pm on September 10 (Ventura), 7:30 pm on September 12 (San Marino), 8 pm on September 14 (Los Angeles), and 7:30 pm on September 15 (Santa Barbara).

"John Harbison was commissioned to write his String Trio, his first, in celebration of Camerata Pacifica's 25th season. Premiered in 2014, it's an absolute masterpiece of form and counterpoint, and has immediately secured a place in the canon," said Camerata Pacifica Artistic Director and Principal Flute Adrian Spence. "Bookending the Harbison are two World War II-era Russian works that could not be more dissimilar in character: Shostakovich's penetrating Piano Trio No. 2 and Prokofiev's buoyant Sonata for Flute and Piano."

Modeled loosely on Mozart's exalted Divertimento in E-flat, Harbison's String Trio has been described as "wonderfully elegant" (The Guardian) and "a major addition to the string trio repertory" (both The Guardian and the Los Angeles Times). The thematic material of the work's six movements is reportedly derived from musical spellings of Argentine soccer great Lionel Messi's name. (Harbison has called Messi the sport's "Mozart.")

In addition to Mr. Spence, featured performers for these concerts will include violinist Paul Huang, violist Richard O'Neill, cellist Ani Aznavoorian, and pianist Inna Faliks. Artist biographies are available online at cameratapacifica.org/about/the-ensemble.

Camerata Pacifica will present a total of eight eclectic programs over the course of 2017-18, including the world premiere of "24 Preludes for Viola and Piano" by Lera Auerbach. In October, the ensemble will present Carl Vine's Inner World, William Kraft's Encounters V, Osvaldo Golijov's Mariel, Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words, and David Bruce's The Consolation of Rain. Complete season program information is available online at cameratapacifica.org/season-tickets/20172018-season.

Camerata Pacifica presents Santa Barbara concerts in Hahn Hall, located on the grounds of the Music Academy of the West, 1070 Fairway Road. San Marino Concerts are presented at the Huntington, 1151 Oxford Road; Los Angeles concerts are presented at Zipper Hall, 200 South Grand Avenue (the Colburn School); and Ventura concerts are presented at Temple Beth Torah, 7620 Foothill Road.

Founded in 1990, Camerata Pacifica is dedicated to engaging audiences intellectually and emotionally by presenting the finest performances of familiar and lesser-known masterworks in venues that emphasize intimacy and a personal connection with the music and musicians. For more information, call 805-884-8410 or visit www.cameratapacifica.org.